On or about Valentine’s Day 2011 – a strange coincidence given Jack Darling’s surname – the West Coast Eagles coaching and playing group assembled in the bowels of Subiaco Oval to review a NAB Cup match.

It was Darling’s first formal hit out in West Coast colours, against cross-town rivals Fremantle at Fremantle Oval, and he was the centre of attention.

Coach John Worsfold highlighted the manic pressure applied by Darling in the Eagles’ forward half. He chased with intent, including a classic run-down of Dockers star Matthew Pavlich, and tackled with vigour.

It was so enthusiastic, it bordered on humorous, with Darling applying schoolboy relish to his opportunity in senior football. He ran past teammates to lay tackles. He was manic.

When the mirth had subsided and his performance was evaluated, he had set a new benchmark for defensive pressure. And that has been the hallmark of a career that today reaches the significant milestone of 200 games.

Since making his debut in round one, 2011 he has missed just 18 games, playing 199 of a possible 217 matches in a remarkable show of durability. He missed 10 of those in one season, at the start of 2015 when battling a navicular injury.

It’s an astonishing record in a sport that demands so much physically of its players. Perhaps it can be attributed to his formative years when his other pursuits – martial arts and surfing – helped him build what many consider to be the body prototype of the modern football.

He is strong, yet supple. His athleticism at times mesmerising fans as he would flip to his feet like the Indian rubberman after going to ground.

As an aside to his feat of handling the demands of the game, he will play his 200^th against Port Adelaide today, a week after teammate Andrew Gaff celebrated the occasion.

Drafted in the same year and born three days apart (June 13 for Darling and June 16 for Gaff), both have shown great resilience to string together such a strong sequence of matches.

For all of his career, Darling has played alongside Josh Kennedy, forming one of the most potent key forward partnerships in the game.  In the nine completed seasons they have operated in tandem, no other player has won the club’s leading goal-kicker award.

Kennedy, who usually plays deeper, has topped the list six times while Darling has produced the highest yield three times.

Kennedy (602), a dual Coleman medallist, is the leading goal-kicker in club history while Darling (381) sits in fifth place behind Peter Sumich (514), Mark Le Cras (441) and Phil Matera (389).

Darling won all-Australian honours last season and doubtless he would have enjoyed the distinction in 2018 had it not been for an ankle injury that robbed him of four games. Before that injury in round 11 he could lay claim to being the hottest player in the competition.

He was a significant influence in the club’s run of 10 successive victories and it was no coincidence that while he convalesced the club lost three of four games. He returned to assist the club’s drive towards the 2018 premiership, playing a key role in the second half as the Eagles endured in one of the great grand finals in history against Collingwood.

Darling and his teammates will be hoping that a trend continues in his milestone games. His 50^th game in round three, 2013 saw the club defeat Melbourne, in his 100^th the Eagles were successful against the Western Bulldogs and his 150^th match came in that epic extra-time finals victory against Port Adelaide at Adelaide Oval.

The Power again are the foe today, this time at Metricon Stadium and the Eagles will look for a big contribution from Darling - as well as Lewis Jetta – who also plays his 200^th senior game.